Saskatoon’s Allen pumped for Women’s Rugby Super Series

“It’s what I do to pay for rugby,” says Saskatoon’s Gillian Allen, who is about to embark on her second international rugby assignment with Team Canada and first with the senior squad.

Allen, 26, has been named to Rugby Canada’s side for the upcoming Women’s Rugby Super Series in Alberta, where Canada will face New Zealand, England and the United States during 15’s play.

Canada opens against the Kiwis this Saturday in Calgary. The Canucks will then meet the United States on Canada Day at Red Deer, before wrapping up the series July 5 in Edmonton against England in a rematch of last year’s World Cup final.

“It’s going to be really great to pull that jersey on and represent our country,” says Allen. “It’s a dream come true. It’s something I’ve worked at for a long time.”

Allen first burst onto the national scene with the under-20 squad when she played in the Nations Cup in the United Kingdom against England and the U.S. That was back in the mid-2000s.

“It’s been a while — things have changed a bit,” admits Allen, who plays for Saskatoon’s Kirin women’s rugby club. “The travelling is cool, but I’m really excited to play (in Canada) because my family and friends get to watch me. It’ll be a good home crowd.”

Allen was selected following a Canada West ID camp held on Vancouver Island in April.

She has played multiple positions in rugby but usually lines up at wing or fullback. She expects to play wing for Canada in the Super Series.

Around 5-foot-5 and 140 pounds, she isn’t big by rugby standards, but well suited for her position.

“I am on the smaller side, but at my position (it’s) generally smaller, faster people,” notes Allen. “My speed is more important than my size on the outside.

“In my role as a winger, I’m expected to get the ball and hopefully score. I’m not the biggest player on the field but hopefully one of the fastest.”

Allen has played club rugby in Saskatoon at the senior women’s level since she was 16. She’s played on numerous provincial squads in Saskatchewan, and a provincial senior women’s team in Alberta.

“A senior at school dragged me out,” explained Allen, who began playing rugby in Grade 9 at St. Joseph High School. “I really liked the physical nature of it. I find in other sports that it’s not quite the same camaraderie when you’re going out to battle every day.”

She had also played volleyball and participated in track and field, specializing in pole vault.

After trying out various sports, she went to the University of Alberta for her first year of post-secondary and played rugby for the Pandas.

She returned to Saskatoon, graduating from the University of Saskatchewan’s environmental engineering program in 2011. Most of her work involves the mining sector with reclamation or remediation work.

Allen has also dabbled in tackle football with the Saskatoon Valkyries women’s squad, lining up at linebacker and defensive back, but she had to let it go because of her commitment with the national rugby squad.

“The challenge of the sport attracted me, and the physical nature obviously is a ton of fun,” says Allen. “There aren’t too many sports, as a female, that you get to go and do battle on the field.

“Just the camaraderie of the girls and the team atmosphere really pulled me in. I love being with the team. After graduating from high school, I picked rugby and never really looked back.”

This Week's Flyers

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.